Semicontinuously operating electrode presses



March 5, 1957 P. BILLEN 2,783,499

SEMICONTINUOUSLY OPERATING ELECTRODE PRESSES 7 Filed Feb. 24. 1954 /NVENTOP flTTY United rates Patent SEMICONTINUOUSLY OPERATING ELECTRODE PRESSES Peter Billen, Leverkusen-Kuppersteg, Germany, assignor to Schloemann Aktiengesellschaft, Dusseldorf, Germany Application February 24, 1954, Serial No. 412,331

Claims priority, application Germany March 5, 1953 1 Claim. (Cl. 18-12) Semicontinuous electrode presses usually operate in such a manner that the filling material fed in at the rear end of the press cylinder is compacted by the press plunger being pushed forward, the nozzle of the press cylinder being kept closed. Thereupon the plunger is again withdrawn, fresh filling material is fed into the cylinder hopper and is again compacted by being compressed by the renewed forward motion of the plunger. This procedure is repeated, until the press cylinder is filled nearly as far as the filling opening with compacted filling material. Only then commences the extrusion by the application of the full pressure of the press plunger which according to the construction of the press takes about 15 to 20 minutes.

In order to enable the air to escape out of the filling material, while it is being compacted, it is suggested according to the invention to provide grooves at the periphery of the press disc, which connect the space in front of the press disc with space behind the press disc. If these grooves be directed axially, the air may easily escape, it is true, but during the pressing operation filling material will penetrate into the grooves. This filling material may then easily adhere to the inside cylinder surface in the form of long strips, where it is ditlicult to dislodge, if only for the reason that the interior of the cylinder is inconvenient to get at.

According to the invention the grooves are for this reason placed obliquely to the pressing direction, namely in such a manner that the projections of their bounding surfaces on to the plane of the front surface of the press disc overlap one another. Owing to the oblique arrangement, the filling material will no longer penetrate so readily in the grooves. Any strips which may nevertheless adhere to the interior surface of the cylinder will then be torn away again by the part of the press disc periphery remaining between the grooves.

The grooves of the press disc can be easily cleaned, when the plunger has been drawn out backwards after the extrusion.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 shows a vertical longitudinal section through the most important parts of an electrode press;

Figure 2 to a larger scale a plan view of the periphery of the press disc developed into a plane; and

Figure 3 a plan view of the press disc.

At the front end of the cylinder 1 is the nozzle 2, in which is still the remainder 3 of the previous pressing operation. The aperture 2a of the nozzle 2 can be closed by a slide-plate 4 when the latter is lowered into the position 4a. The slide-plate bears against a holding piece It). At the rear end of the cylinder 1 there is at the top the filling hopper 9, whilst the press plunger 5 with the press disc 6 can be introduced from behind into the open end of the cylinder.

The press disc 6 is provided at its periphery with.

grooves 7 which connect the space in front of the press disc with the space behind the press disc. These grooves are arranged obliquely in such a manner that the projection (rt-b) of one bounding Wall '70 overlaps the projection (cd) of the other bounding wall 7b.' Through the oblique arrangement of the grooves the amounts of the carbon (filling material 3) entering from the right will be smaller than with an axial arrangement. On the other hand, the press disc 6 will itself tear away any press material adhering to the inner surface of the cylinder.

The press operates in the usual manner, that is to say, the press disc 6 being drawn back, a quantity of filling material 11 is fed in through the hopper 9; thereupon the plunger 5 is driven forward, so that the fed-in filling material be given approximately the form 3a. The

quantity of air forced during this part of the operation out of the filling material escapes through the grooves 7. Thereupon, the press plunger 5 is withdrawn, fresh filling material is fed in through the hopper 9'and the press plunger 5 is driven forward, so that the second quantity of filling material adopts approximately the form 3b. This operation is continued until the quantities 3c and 3d of filling material are in position. Thereupon the actual pressing operation commences, in which the gate 4 is of course drawn up. During this pressing operation which takes a long time to complete pressing material will, it is true penetrate into the oblique groove 7, but this press material will not adhere to the inner surface of the cylinder, as it is scraped oil again by the press disc itself. The press disc is cleaned, after the press plunger 5 has been withdrawn to the left out of the cylinder 1.

I claim:

A semi-continuously operating electrode press, comprising: a cylinder having a nozzle at one end and formed With a filling opening near its other end, in combination at the latter end with a plunger having a press disc, the press disc being formed with grooves on the periphery connecting the space in front of the press disc with the space behind the press disc, and the grooves extending obliquely to the pressing direction in such a manner that the projections of their bounding surfaces on to the plane of the front surface of the press disc overlap one another.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 180,384 Smith July 25, 1876 2,414,029 Duncan Jan. 7, 1947 2,617,169 Bodkin Nov. 11, 1952 

